


Bees and the Beach: Menagerie

by Kiiratam



Series: Bees and the Beach [6]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst, Blake has a panic attack, Canon Compliant, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Kali is a menace
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-22
Updated: 2019-10-23
Packaged: 2020-12-28 05:17:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21131273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiiratam/pseuds/Kiiratam
Summary: Kali is trying to talk her daughter into visiting the beach.Takes place during Volume 4, between Chapters 5 and 8. (My BMBLB fic index)





	1. Baby Steps

"Mother! You _cannot_ be serious."

  
Kali waggled the hanger and the little nothing on it at her. "It's the latest style, Blake. If you go to the beach in one of those Atlas one-pieces, everyone will wonder what you're hiding."

  
"My _breasts_, mother. I will be hiding my _breasts_." If Blake's ears flattened any more, they would be inside her skull.

  
"It is a clothing optional beach, dear." Kali smiled at her. "And there are other beautiful people here. No one will stare."

  
"They will absolutely stare. I'm the daughter of the chief, back after being away for years." _Don't lie to me to make me feel better!_

  
Kali sat down on Blake's bed, setting the teeny bikini down on it. "Blake, they're just curious. And you didn't want a big welcome home party. Which only made everyone _more_ curious." She patted the bed next to her, and Blake sat down, trying not to sulk. Her mother could feel out a crowd better than anyone she knew. If she had something to say about the public mood, she was definitely right. Even if Blake didn't like it. "I know it doesn't look like it, but this is camouflage. You can't vanish from the public eye, but you _can_ blend in."

  
Blake sighed, reaching up and feeling the jagged, tender scar on her side. "Can I at least wear something over it? A sundress, a wrap, anything?"

  
Her mother ran a hand through Blake's hair. "I'm sure we can find something."

  
Blake made herself keep breathing normally. It was her own mother. This was normal. She had always been very touch-oriented. Blake just... didn't want to be touched. Or talked to, or do anything but curl up in a dark corner and sob for a week. But she needed to be safe, and this was the one place she could still be safe. The one place she hadn't ruined, despite her best efforts.

  
She breathed in her mother's scent, made herself lean against her. Blake had grown since they'd last been this close. Kali seemed so much smaller now. Still vital, still with the same quiet presence that could fill up a room. But Blake wasn't a little girl anymore, and she was trying to get used to her own mother again.

  
Kali kept petting her hair. "Besides, don't you want to show off a bit for Sun?"

  
Blake pulled away to give her an exasperated look. "Mother!"

  
Her mother cackled. That was the only word for it. "But he's _cute_, and _he_ obviously likes you. So he's got good taste, at least."

  
"He's not that kind of friend."

  
"No." Kali patted her hair between her flattened ears. "He clearly wants to be more than just your friend, though."

  
Blake sighed, pulling her legs up onto the bed and hugging them. "I know."

  
"Is Sun really _that_ bad, Blake?"

  
"No." _But he isn't Yang._ "He just... doesn't listen to me."

  
"He doesn't do what you want, you mean."

  
Blake blew out a breath before replying, trying to let her angry edge out. "No, he doesn't _listen_ to me. He just does whatever he wants, and doesn't worry about me at all!"

  
"Dear... you have been rather uptight."

  
Bolting to her feet, Blake turned on her mother. "_Uptight?!_ The White Fang attacked Beacon! They killed people I knew! They brought Grimm down on the whole city! Adam, who _you_ hated, who _you_ told me was a monster, used me as bait!" She shoved her coat aside, showing off her scar. "He cut off my friend's arm! And you think that my problem is that I'm _uptight?!_" Blake locked eyes with her mother. Wanting to see shame, revulsion, horror, even apathy. An opening she could use.

  
Kali just met her gaze levelly. Shoulders braced. Ready for the next blow.

  
_She doesn't deserve this. It's my fault. All of it is my fault._ Blake tried to turn away, to storm out of the room, but she suddenly couldn't summon the anger that had gripped her. Just a putrid loathing deep inside. She managed to put her hands in front of her face, hiding the brimming tears. Started swallowing her sobs. _Quietly. Find a place to hide until you recover. Quickly. _Blake called up her mental map of her room, looking for a likely refuge.

  
_ Bathroom. Pretend you're taking a shower._ She took a step in that direction, blinking her eyes to clear them. _Calm now. Break later._

  
Her wrist had been caught. _Go blank. Apologize. Bury it. Cry later._

  
Blake felt herself being hugged, and it snapped her mind out of her old patterns. He didn't hug.

  
"I'm so sorry, Blake."

  
She squeezed her eyes shut, and wrapped her arms around her mother. Lied to herself, feeling the desperate strength of the arms around her. _I'm sorry, Yang. It's all my fault. You'll never hug me like this again. I stole that from you._ She breathed in the smell of her mother's hair, and let her fantasy slip away. She hadn't even stayed long enough for that. Not long enough to give Yang even a worthless, self-pitying excuse of an apology.

  
Blake didn't even know how long she wept, clinging to her mother. Long enough for Kali to guide her to the bed, and make her sit before she fell over. The tears were mostly gone by the time Kali gently removed her coat, and tucked her under the light blanket. Like she was a child again. Her mother just sat on the edge of the bed, slowly stroking Blake's hair, just a comforting, murmuring presence.

  
As Blake drifted off, a distant corner of her mind was laughing at the absurdity of it. Her mother had just put her down for an afternoon nap after a temper tantrum.

  
_I really am just an idiot child, aren't I? No wonder I latched onto Yang like a leech. I just lied my way into Ruby's old place._

  
_ Sleep. Sleep will help._  



	2. Sunny Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sun gets to go to the beach with the non-scary Belladonnas!

"It's beautiful, Mrs. B! Blake, look at this!" Sun looked back at his friend and her mother, grinning, arms wide to take in the shoreline.

  
"I know, Sun. I lived here, remember? I've been to this beach before."

  
Blake really seemed determined to have a bad time. But, Sun thought, there _were_ a lot of people here. Maybe Blake would feel better once they had everything set up, and she could read whatever book she'd inevitably brought. She had to have at least one in the bag she was carrying, considering Sun could see Gambol Shroud's hilt poking out of it. Blake would have brought a book before her weapon. And she brought her weapon, so...

  
"I'm glad you like it, Sun." Kali, at least, smiled back at him. Back when Blake smiled, they would have matched. That was it! Sun had a goal for the day - get Blake to smile. ...Actually, that might be a good _ongoing_ goal. Sun followed in Kali's wake, as she picked through the beach crowd, looking for a spot to settle.

  
It wasn't like Blake didn't have _reasons_ to be cranky. Sun went back and changed his mind. Really, she had reasons to be downright furious! But she really wasn't using it how Sun was expecting her to use it. Blake wasn't spending extra time training with Gambol Shroud, or putting on edge on her sword that could cut sunbeams, or even just making a list of everyone she needed to get payback on. As far as revenge rampages went, this was noooooot that interesting.

  
But Blake _had_ said she wasn't going to go hunting the White Fang. Fortunately, the White Fang was already here, with those two... brothers? Were they actually brothers or did they just call themselves brothers? Sun would have to remember to ask Kali about that next tea-time. Blake may not want to take her revenge on the White Fang, but the universe was determined to keep giving her the option. Sun half wanted to try to get some answers out of them himself, but...

  
There were a couple of reasons why he wasn't. First, he didn't want to be the idiot who just charged in, got captured, and had to sit out the finale in chains. And he _was_ a guest here, and even if things seemed a little tense between the Belladonnas and the White Fang, they weren't actually fighting or anything yet. And as a guest, any mistakes Sun made would reflect on the Belladonnas. He liked Blake and Kali too much to do that to them. And Mr. Belladonna was Very Large.

  
And he was in Menagerie for the first time! There was so much to see, and do, and it was really hard not to get distracted. Especially when Mrs. Belladonna asked if he wanted to go to the beach with her and her daughter. Blake in a bikini? How could he say no? Even if Blake was wearing a wrap over hers. And Kali was gorgeous too! And _also_ in a bikini!

  
Actually, pretty much everyone here was in a bikini. Or less. Some in a lot less. Sun _really_ didn't mind. Even if it made it even harder to concentrate.

  
Goal, right, Blake, smiling. What was the point in setting easy goals?

  
Current progress was zero. Blake wasn't frowning, but she also didn't look particularly happy. But better than Sun was expecting, given the crowds. She wasn't flinching from the noise, or looking for somewhere to hide. If anything, she just looked bored. Just looking out to sea, not really paying attention as her mother and Sun got a spot set up with a blanket, and towels, and their basket full of lunch.

  
"Hey, Mrs. B, shouldn't we have an umbrella? Something to give us some shade?"

  
Kali shook her head. "It's a bit of an unspoken rule here. We've got some set up," she indicated little clusters of umbrellas up and down the beach, "But they ruin the view and take up too much space."

  
"Oh. Yeah, that makes sense." Need to get Blake talking. It's not like she's actually doing anything, just zoning out over the water. "How long has it been since you were at the beach, Blake? It looks like you missed the ocean."

  
Blake shifted her gaze to him. She said, in a level tone, "I like the ocean."

  
"You _do_ spend a lot of time staring at it." Alright, she's talking! Progress! Make a joke or something. It doesn't have to be good, just something to build on. "Are you hoping to see lunch?"

  
She just shrugged. Thaaaaat really hadn't worked.

  
Kali opened the food basket. "We already have lunch, Sun. Have you had sushi before? It's one of Blake's favorites."

  
"Oh yeah! We went out to a sushi place one time! I really liked it!" Sun noticed Kali giving her daughter an appraising look.

  
Sun sort of lost himself in the deliciousness for a bit. Fortunately, all three of them were busy eating and not talking, so Sun was pretty sure he hadn't missed anything.

  
He stretched, eyes closed, smiling. "That was great!" He opened his eyes, and glanced at Blake, still eating her last roll of sushi. He shouldn't interrupt _that_, he knew how much Blake loved fish. A nice, safe conversation topic was what he needed. Something Sun could bring up with Kali, and draw Blake in on. He turned to Kali. "So does Blake get her book-reading from you or Mr. Belladonna?"

  
Kali laughed. "Oh, that's right, you haven't been in Ghira's study yet. He's got shelves from the floor to the ceiling on every wall. I read, but my husband devours whole libraries." She leaned closer to Sun. "And he thinks it'll ruin his image, but he's got whole shelves of fiction in there."

  
"What kind?"

  
"Oh, all kinds. He reads mysteries to try to solve them first, romances for ideas, and speculative fiction to yell at it."

  
Sun quirked his head. "What? Why?"

  
"It's just that a lot of authors don't include Faunus in their works. The far-future ones are the worst. Apparently, over half of them left all the Faunus on Remnant. And a lot of the rest only have us as bit players, and _sometimes_ the villain." She shook her head. "It's quite a shame, because Ghira loves to explore those imagined worlds, and even there, he can't escape from his life's work. And the fact that it isn't done yet."

  
"Yeah, that would kind of suck."

  
Kali went on. "How about you? Are you a reader?"

  
"Ummm, less than my instructors would want." Sun tried not to think about his grades. "There's just so much else to do!" Blake had finished eating, and was dabbing at her mouth with a napkin. "So what's today's book, Blake?"

  
"I don't have one."

  
"Whaaaaaat?" Sun shifted over and poked Blake in the arm. "Are you sure you're Blake, and not one of her doubles?" He kept poking, just in case.

  
She slapped his hand away. "I don't have any, and I didn't want to try to figure out my father's organizational system."

  
"He hasn't changed it, dear."

  
"But he doesn't have a poetry section, and I didn't know where he would have filed it."

  
Sun looked back and forth between mother and daughter.

  
"Were you looking for something specific, Blake? I'm sure he could have helped you find it."

  
Blake looked down at the blanket. Was she... blushing? ...Did that count on progress towards a smile?

  
"No, that's all right, mother."

  
Sun had questions. So he asked them. "If you don't have a book, what were you planning to do, Blake? Actually come swimming?"

  
She shrugged. "Swimming, sun-bathing. Go on a walk." Her ears flattened. "The last one was before I remembered how crowded this beach was."

  
"Yeah, the Vale beaches are a lot less crowded. Even the ones right by the city." Sun tried to remember. "Were you there for that beach party we went to? With the fireworks? The one time I managed to get Neptune down to the beach?"

  
"I never went to the beaches by Vale, Sun."

  
"But I remember R-" Sun managed to shut his mouth before he mentioned remembering Ruby, and Weiss, and Zwei, and all of JNPR... Not Yang, though. Maybe she'd been busy? "Um, no, no, you're right. Sorry." He looked up at Blake, feeling a bit of anxiety. Any time he mentioned their Beacon friends, she just got real quiet, and only talked when directly addressed. Sun looked at Kali, who seemed to pick up on his fears right away.

  
"If we're sun-bathing, we should put sunscreen on." She pulled a bottle out of her bag, squirted some into her hand, and offered the bottle to her daughter. "Can you get my back when you're done, dear?"

  
Sun decided it would be best if he sat and faced the ocean for a bit. The big splashy. Neptune's bane. Nice, relaxing waves and sunlight on the sea foam. Very few fantasies. Just merciless waves and winds. Neptune also went on about how treacherous the ocean could be. Like it had personally wronged him, instead of being, you know, _water_.

  
Someone handed the sunscreen bottle to his tail. Good, they were done. Sun pulled his jacket off, and started putting a layer of sunscreen on. He'd asked Pyrrha once if he could use his Aura to protect himself from the sun. ...Poor Pyrrha. She hadn't actually been able to tell him one way or another, since she'd seen evidence of both. She just wore sunscreen. But she'd pointed him at Ren, and _he'd_ said that it was just a matter of tuning your Aura correctly. And Nora had said that both of their Auras were pretty sensitive, and helped with cold, warm, sunlight, and, if they concentrated, even rain. But then Ren had said that it put more of a strain on their Auras, and while it was useful, a theoretical Ideal Combatant would tune their Aura to only protect them against dangerous hits. But the utility of a broader-spectrum Aura was useful when it came to what to pack.

  
But Sun had sunscreen now, so it was really all just a moot point, wasn't it?

  
Kali asked, "Do you need me to get your back, Sun? Not everyone is double-jointed like my daughter."

  
"Mother. I've done yoga for over a decade. I am not double-jointed. Just flexible."

  
"Uh, sure! That'd be great." Sun passed the bottle back to his tail, and held it out behind him. Tried to relax, and not think about anything in particular. Especially the nothing that was happening behind him.

  
There were a lot of people in the water. Mostly in the shallows, playing in the waves. There were a bunch farther out, though, with body boards, surfboards... why was that one standing on their board and making weird hand-and-arm motions at the shore?

  
"Blake? Your eyes are better than mine. Do you see the wolf Faunus on the surfboard out there? Pink shorts?" He pointed, suddenly not overly concerned with who was touching his back.

  
Blake leaned forward into his field of view, sighting down his arm. "Did you bring your weapon?"

  
"The Bang Bros? Yeah, they're in my jacket. Why?"

  
Untying her wrap, Blake grabbed Gambol Shroud. "Because we have to go kill that Devilfish." She started forward, pulling on Sun's shoulder to get him moving. "Can you use your clones to toss me out there?"

  
"Just like the Sea Feilong, yeah."

  
"Do it, then follow me as fast you can. They usually hunt in pairs. Mom-"

  
"I'll get the Lifeguard."

  
Finally, some action!

* * *

  
Sun and Blake staggered up out of the waves, supporting the wolf Faunus between them. Sun said, "Sorry about your board, dude." If there were even pieces left, Sun would have been surprised.

  
"Benny, you saved me from the men in black suits. Don't sweat the dings."

  
Kali was waiting for them on the shore, behind a small swarm of assistant lifeguards. By now, everyone was out of the water, and the crowds were already dispersing. But at least it wasn't a panic, just slowly drifting off. They handed the wolf Faunus over to a few of the lifeguards, and turned out to look back out over the ocean.

  
The Lifeguard nodded at them as she came ashore. "Thanks for the help, Huntsman. Miss Belladonna, didn't know you were back. Or a Huntress, now. Good work."

  
"Thank you." Blake paused, then asked. "I thought they hunted in pairs. Why were there three of them?"

  
Sun had asked the same question when the third one showed up, but everyone had been a bit too busy to actually give him an answer. He looked at the Lifeguard expectantly.

  
She tapped the hilt of her dagger, frowning. "I wish I could tell you. They were all the same size, so it wasn't two parents and a juvenile, which is the usual explanation. And these three-packs keep showing up. I've sent out letters to the Kingdoms, but I haven't gotten any responses yet." She looked like she was about to say more, but glanced around at the beach. "I need to get back to work, excuse me." She slipped past them, already calling out to her assistants.

  
Kali rushed forward, throwing her arms around their necks and dragging them into a hug. For how tiny she was, she was surprisingly strong. "I'm so proud of you two!"

  
"Mom, please." Sun didn't even have to see Blake to know that she was embarrassed.

  
"This is what we do, Mrs. B." He patted her arm.

  
She released them and took a step back. "I'm sorry your beach day was ruined. Did we want to try again tomorrow?"

  
Blake sighed. "I... really just want to go home. And get changed." She scowled down at her bikini.

  
Sun felt his face growing hot. She'd bounced out a few times during the fight, and Sun hadn't really been able to avert his eyes. What with the life-and-death struggle. It had been less distracting than he would have thought, but the HUNDREDS OF TEETH had helped. ...In the Devilfish's mouth. Not in Blake's bikini. Now that would have been distracting. Alarming-distracting, not good-distracting.

  
Kali didn't look completely convinced, or maybe she just felt guilty. So Sun chimed in, "Yeah, we can worry about the beach later. We can sun-bathe on the balcony, if we want. Or just have a nap." He yawned for effect, showing off a fatigue he didn't really feel. "Unexpected fights are the worst." Blake just looked exhausted. Even if it wasn't all from the fight. Sun wondered how she was sleeping. _If_ she was sleeping. She didn't look as bad as she had in the lead-up to the school dance, but...

  
Blake gave him a small, grateful smile. Ha! Victory! Sun wondered if he could get two smiles out of her before the end of the day. New goal!


End file.
